Preface

Let me start with saying that before you even begin to think about choosing a tool or platform for your IT service catalog (or catalogs, since there can be both IT and business facing service catalogs),  you have to make sure you have your IT service processes figured out. Without well thought out processes in place, no tool implementation is going to succeed. Getting the right processes in place is the subject for another post. Today we will be discussing tools.

There are several vendors that produce ITSM tools. I will list some here. However, keep in mind that I am not about to endorse any single vendor or tool as each company has unique needs and so there is no one tool that will fit everyone. You must do your research and come to your own conclusions. Some of the ITSM tool vendors I know of and that have encountered are:

• PMG
• Service-Now
• Newscale
• HP
• BMC

There are many more players in the Service Catalog field and you should research your options as much as you can.

Criteria

As with all things ITIL, success criteria will vary from implementation to implementation but a few things that I have always looked for when choosing a service catalog tool are:

• “Actionable” Service Catalog
• Integration with existing IT and finance tool sets
• Process automation
• Ease of use
• Scalability
• Cost

Actionable

Once you have cataloged all your services and published this catalog of services, can your consumers act upon it? It is just a static document – electronic or organic – that tells people what is available and who to contact or is it a dynamic tool that enables the consumer? Can the consumer request the service directly from within the catalog entry where they found the service they are looking for? A common metaphor is does your catalog function and is it as easy to use as Amazon.com?

Integration

Most companies already have a set of tools and software to monitor, inventory, and manage their IT infrastructures. There are often also software in place to keep track of costs (budgets), orders, helpdesk requests and many other functions within IT. Perhaps there even is another service catalog tool in place in another division in the company or, if you are business aligned, within corporate shared services. All these tools must be taken into consideration when selecting a service catalog tool. Can it integrate with any or all of your existing tools, will it need to? Will your service catalog tool need to have functionality that can replace an existing tool? Also, how hard or easy will it be to integrate your new service catalog tool? There are many such questions to answer, and you need to make the vendor prove that their tool can do what they promise before you commit.

Process Automation

First you need to ensure that you actually have good processes in place for requesting and managing the services you provide. If you don’t, you will need to engineer them. Do not buy a tool just to discover that you now will have to create processes to fit your new expensive service catalog tool. Have good processes in place and documented, then find a tool that can easily automate your processes. Everyone has a slightly different way of accomplishing their tasks and your tool needs to fit your way of doing things.

Ease of Use

Is the interface clean and straightforward? Is the service catalog easy to use, not just for the end user who will need to navigate and request services but also for the administrators and service delivery personnel? It has to be easy to update services, view a request queue, send notifications, automate workflow, etc. etc. If any user of the tool finds it hard to use or cumbersome, there will be resistance and rest assured that they will find a way to circumvent the process.

Scalability

Can the service catalog tool scale? You may only be expecting your business unit to be using this tool or you may think that you have a certain number of requests per week, month or year. Just realize that, as with all things new, there will be unexpected consequences when you introduce your new tool. It may prove to be the best thing since sliced bread in your company and now everyone wants to be included. Can your tool handle the volume without slowing down performance? How do you manage growth? What are the costs? This is something that must be kept in mind from the start.

Cost

It may be obvious that the cost is important but realize that one tool that may have a higher up front cost could save you money in the long run. When considering costs, don’t just look at up front implementation and licensing cost, consider whether you can take future development of your tool in-house or if you need to get all updates from the vendor. When will the vendor start charging for updates, bug fixes, etc.? How is the licensing scheme calculated, per user, per CPU? You will need to find answers to these and many more questions before you will know how much the new service catalog tool will really cost you, not just now but going forward.

In Closing

As you see, there are many things to consider before making a selection for a service catalog tool. In the end you may find that your shop isn’t ready for an online service catalog just yet due to lack of process documentation, service mapping, or for financial reasons. Or you may have your ducks in a row and be ready for service catalog Nirvana. As long as you have your check lists, know what you need and what to expect, and you keep your vendor honest, you will most likely have a smooth successful implementation that will have your users shower IT with compliments.